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May 7-8: Introduction to Kayak Camping - Overnight on Squam Lake


Dan Foster

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Trip posting: May 7-8: Introduction to Kayak Camping - Overnight on Squam Lake (L2) - Past Trips - NSPN Message Board

 

The night before our Intro to Kayak Camping trip on Squam, the NWS upped Saturday's forecast to 15 mph winds out of the northeast, with gusts to 30. The drive north featured several of the aforementioned gusts, and whitecaps were visible out on Squam as we loaded boats in Piper Cove. We headed out, ducking south to avoid the wind as we paddled down to Heron Cove for a hot lunch on a protected, sandy beach. After lunch we explored further down Dog Cove before turning north and working our way back up to the group campsite on Moon Island. We had the usual group site on Moon reserved, as well as the Moon 2 site on the far west side of the island, conveniently tucked out of the wind. Several of us elected to haul gear down to camp at Moon 2, which has a wrap-around sunset view and some attractive west-facing ledges. Joe and Kim, new NSPN members with extensive backpacking experience as leaders for the Worcester AMC, demonstrated not one, not two, but three different options for hanging food to keep it safe from bears, raccoons, and rodents. I thought I knew bear bagging techniques prior to this trip, but came away humbled, and rededicated to practicing better food storage and camp hygiene.

As they were doing this, the weather gods shifted the prevailing wind a few degrees to the SE, without bothering to notify the NWS or any other weather reporting or predicting sites. As a result, the idyllic Moon 2 site, where we'd agreed to host our evening fire and dinner party, suddenly became a wind tunnel. We quickly shifted the dinner plans to the group site (Moon 1), and enjoyed a wind-free evening there. Right at sunset, and almost as if on cue, a mating pair of loons started calling from the water, and we watched a spectacular sunset over the Squam range with loons calling just off-shore, while snacking on fresh-popped popcorn (thanks to Ben R. for the inspiration!).

Temps dipped to 36 degrees overnight, but everyone seemed in high spirits the next morning. After a leisurely breakfast in camp, we noodled our way north through the Three Sister islands toward Five Finger Point before running downwind to Church Island. There we enjoyed a last lunch and trip debrief before a final downwind run to the cars at Squam Lake Association.

Approximate mileage was 6.5 mi (statute) on Saturday, 5.5 mi on Sunday.

Some observations, anecdotes, and favorite memories:

An adult pair of loons surfaced out about 15 feet off Karen's starboard bow and went about their business without a care in the world. Every time I paddle on Squam, the loons find another way to make the trip more memorable. This year was no exception.

At 7:02AM, every bass boat in NH roared past Moon island, presumably as part of some Mother's Day bass fishing tournament. Other than that, we pretty much had the lake to ourselves.

I second-guessed my navigation three times on the approach to Church/Chocorua island, seeing two red spar buoys in the water (which would suggest we were approaching Mink Island) and expecting two black spar buoys based on my paper chart. The old Squam chart has red dots for the red buoys, and faint transparent rings for the black buoys. Several trips ago, I colored in the rings with a black sharpie for better visibility, and presumably I accidentally blackened the two red buoys off Church as well. To my paddling companions who might have wondered why we zigged and zagged on that approach, now you know...

Squam is an ideal location to practice navigation. So many islands, so many hidden passages that only become apparent when you're right on top of them. I learn something every time I navigate there, and I encourage others to do so as well. Get the $10 waterproof chart from SLA.

The water was a good foot higher than we usually see in the fall. Our favorite cocktail/sunset/dinner rock was completely submerged. The landing beach on Moon was almost non-existent. Less gel-coat was sacrificed in the Three Sisters rock gardens.

This was just a overnight trip, but we approached it like a longer adventure. We took a circuitous route to Moon Island, stopping to cook lunch along the way. Before setting up camp, we spent some time walking the island and discussing the pros and cons of our camping options, and then go to reevaluate those decisions when the wind shifted an hour later. We had lots of discussion, before the trip and while underway, about gear selection, paddling clothing, and cooking options. We had hammocks, ultralight tents, and ultra-heavy tents, and compared the merits of wood tent platforms vs. pea stone gravel pads. We fired up Jetboils, Pocket Rockets, hanging grills, and pseudo-Dutch ovens. On one important topic, there appears to be little debate: Starbucks VIA seems to be the camping coffee of choice.

I really appreciated the opportunity to welcome four new members to the club, and to spend an enjoyable weekend camping and kayaking with a great group of paddlers. Thank you again to Karen, Elaine, Mary, Joe, and Kim, and I look forward to paddling and camping with you all again in the future. 

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Glad you mentioned navigation challenges!  At some point I realized that Squam is a deceptively challenging place to navigate: it looks simple because distances  between points are not long , and consequences of errors  are relatively mild, but islands and mainland blend into one another, everything looks the same:  trees , rocks and water in all directions, with few discernible landmarks (lighthouses, cliffs, headlands etc) so its easy to goof if you're not on your toes. Its a great place for chart and compass work, and to have a   navigation workshop within-a-workshop, as evidently  you did. .  

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